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Historical Events
The Purge "Ever since the rise of Man as the dominant race there has been a rise in conflicts. By their very nature mankind is at odds with itself. Whether by friendly competition or over a claim for power humans willingly engage in various forms of struggles against each other. Nothing demonstrates this more than The First Purge. In the early days of mankind the arcane arts were viewed with awe and wonder. However, what was originally seen as miraculous soon become distorted and turned towards personal gain. Men used these powers to rise above the other races and began forming the nation that still stand to this day. The cost was high. Thousands of lives were lost, across all races, in the many wars that were driven by the greed for power. In the end, mankind stood victorious over the old kingdoms that now mostly lay in ruins. The conflicts didn’t end there. These new human kingdoms began warring with each other as they struggled for dominance. It was during these Wars of Nations that some human masters of the arcane attempted to summon the ancient dragon goddess, Tiamat, to Malidore’s plane. It was this moment when mankind’s truly destructive nature was fully seen. To be this violent and to control the magical arts was too much. Wise men and women from all of Maidore’s races gathered together and formed the Council of the Ages. This Council sought to put an end to all these wars. Believing that the evil thirst for power combined with the power of magic would eventually destroy all of Malidore they Council called for a Purge of all that studied the arcane. Leaving only a few trusted arcane masters that were placed under the strict authority of the Council. This brought about a tolerable balance between all the nations. The power struggles between Man’s nations were reduced and, with time, even those smaller remaining conflicts became tales of lore. The Second Purge is rarely mentioned these days. Speculation claims that the Elves secretly coveted the power Mankind had over the lands. Outspoken leaders among their settlements began speaking of the old days, before Humans came to Malidore. A time when Elves still retained their godly powers. A swelling tide of Elven arcanist began causing terror among human cities. The Council, once again, convened to settle this problem. This time the Elven members of the council abstained from the final vote as they would not vote for the destruction of their own people. Within a few short years after the first uprising the Second Purge culled their numbers enough to have the desired effect. Little is mentioned that this Purge did not discriminate against just the arcane users. The Council still exists today, but it a shadow of what it once was. With the last Purge occuring over a millennia ago and no other major uprising or conflicts to battle against it serves little more than a reminder of what the citizens of Malidore once were and what they’ve had to overcome. Today, the true power lies in the three largest human kingdoms of Wayhurst, Gruedenfels, and Cambriel." ''-Quilla Silverthread, Council Historian "The Danger of Arcane Magics in Trying Times"'' War of Nations "The early history of Man is plagued by greed and ambition. Nearly 3000 years ago the original tribes of Man banded together to increase both prosperity and power. However, this soon proved to be a problem. Fighting among the various human factions began to cause fractures within the alliances. Starting with minor disagreements over disbursement of profits rivalries began to form. Attempts were made to calm these issues, but it was a futile effort. Three distinct factions formed over time. The Wayhurst Family, one of the more powerful families that controlled trade in the East, was the first to split off and formed their own Nation. They were followed quickly by the hardy people of the North as they formed the Gruedenfels Clan. To the West a collection of merchants came together to form Cambriel. The old rivalries remained and continued to fester as each of the three new Nations grew in power. Within a few decade after the split the power struggles grew into small battles as each Nation fought to control more and more territory. Little concern was shown towards the other races as the Nations of Man sought to subdue each other. This escalated into the War of Nations." ''-Quilla Silverthread, Council Historian "Malidore's Most Destructive Races"'' The Great Darkness "A little more than a generation ago Malidore was covered in a great cloud of darkness. It began in late Winter and originated in the West and quickly spread to cover the entire sky, horizon to horizon. This darkness lasted nearly two years and caused many problems for the people of Malidore. The cloud blocked the sun and barely any crops grew because of this. This lead into a famine as animals and people could no longer sustain their diets. By the end of Summer disease began to spread as beast and man started to die in greater numbers due to extensive malnutrition. The great catastrophe lasted nearly two years and reduced Malidore’s population by more than half. The people of Malidore are slowly recovering. When the massive cloud first appeared the Council suspect arcane powers at work, but they could find no evidence to support such a claim. Some attempts were made to sail West but severe weather either turned those ships around or consumed them. To this day the cause remains a mystery." ''-Quilla Silverthread, Council Historian "Perils from Unknown Reaches"''